A NewFound Trust
by TheMidwestJess
Summary: In an alternate ending to "The Southern Raiders" Katara has to trust Zuko more than she's ever had to in order to make it back to camp. First Zutara fic, hope you like it! Rated T for safety.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own A:TLA or any of the characters in it. Anything recognizable belongs to nickelodeon.

"She lied to you. She was protecting the last waterbender," Katara said as she realized what her mother had done for her. The old man was shocked.

"What? Who?" he asked in earnest. Katara's eyes snapped open and she glared at him for a moment.

"Me!" she yelled. She took a fighting stance and stopped all the raindrops in mid-air. Yan Rah looked around in horror as he realized how terrible this situation really was. Katara then created a dome around them and rain glanced off the sides and top of the new obstruction.

Katara gathered her strength and bended the droplets into tiny ice daggers. She then sent them all at Yan Rah at once. He cowered in fear like she knew he would. When he felt no piercing impact upon his skin, he uncovered his face to see the daggers hovering right above him. Hundreds of weapons aimed at his face and body only inches away.

She then realized she couldn't do it. Katara couldn't kill him. She let the bended water hang in the air for a few moments longer and then released it. The water splashed down on the man, soaking him to his skin. He got up on his knees and started to speak.

"I did a bad thing," he said. "I know I did. So why don't you take my mother? That would be fair." He seemed like he almost wanted her to. Like he wanted his mother killed. However, Katara wasn't even listening.

She slowly opened her eyes and looked at the man. Then she said with as much venom in her voice as she could muster, "I always wondered what kind of person could do such a thing. But now that I see you, I think I understand." She walked forward and continued on. "There's just nothing inside you, nothing at all. You're pathetic and sad and empty."

"Please, spare me," he begged. He was practically bowing to her. Then he started to sob.

"But as much as I hate you," Katara said, "I just can't do it." Her eyes started to tear. Yan Rah almost smirked, but said nothing.

As Katara turned to start walking with Zuko shortly behind her, though, he lunged at her. He had somehow taken out a small knife while they were talking. It was nothing big, just an average-sized pocket-knife. Oh, but it did some damage.

Yan Rah leaped and cut Katara on the thigh. He then jumped up and ran. He ran as far away as he could. Zuko tried to run after him and incapacitate him, but the old man knew where to run. He was gone before Zuko had a chance.

Zuko ran back to where he had left Katara. She was lying on the ground holding her left leg. Her face was twisted in pain as she gritted her teeth. Zuko could tell she was badly injured.

"Katara," he said. "Katara, let me see." Her grip on her leg lessened slightly. He took this as a cue to remove her hands. He slowly lifted her fingers out of the way and looked at the cut. The knife had left a long gash in the fabric of her clothing. Along the edges of the opening, there were growing pools of sticky, crimson blood. Zuko could tell the cut was fairly deep. He knew she wouldn't be able to make it all the way back to camp, even on Appa. He didn't even know if she could make it anywhere at the moment.

Katara inhaled sharply and started to groan. "Zuko," she said in between gasps. "I can't move my leg." He realized how badly she was injured and he started thinking of what he could do to help the current situation. The first thing they needed was to get out of this rain.

He looked around quickly for some sort of shelter. He found it about a hundred feet away. There was a small clump of trees with intertwining branches and some rocks around them. It looked like the perfect dry spot.

Zuko looked down at Katara. "Hold on to me and don't let go," he said. He bent down on one knee and slid his hands under her. One arm went under her knees and the other around her back. She wrapped her arms around his neck. He carried her over to the covered area and gently laid her down.

Then, knowing the bleeding needed to be stopped, Zuko took off his traveling cloak. He ripped the bottom of the cloak off in a long strip. He tied it high on her thigh, trying not to blush as his hands were forced into risqué places. The cloth acted like a tourniquet and helped to slow the flow of blood to the wound.

"Katara," said Zuko. "I'm going to put pressure on the cut, okay? You need to hold still. I need to stop the bleeding." He took out his spare tunic from his pack and wadded it up. He placed it on the cut and started to press. Katara gasped and started to squirm. "Easy," he said. "Just hold still. You'll be alright. I've got you."

Zuko noticed the blood stopping after a minute or two, but kept the pressure on until he knew for sure that the bleeding had ceased. After that, he removed the cloth from the wound and looked at it a bit closer. He could tell that the cut wasn't that deep. It was more than a surface wound, however. If they were in the city, he would've normally taken her to the healers to get it sewn together. As it was, though, they weren't anywhere close to a town, and there was no way Katara was going to be able to go anywhere like this.


	2. Chapter 2

Sorry it's taken me... about 6 months to upload the second chapter. I actually forgot I ever posted one. And I kind of grew out of fanfiction. But here's my best shot. I hope you like it!

"Katara, I'm going to need you to stay here for a minute," said Zuko. "Okay?" Katara winced as she nodded. "I'm going to go back and get Appa."

While Zuko headed back towards Appa, Katara inspected her wound closer. She had tried to heal it when Zuko ran after Yan Rha, but realized her healing powers wouldn't work. She was extremely concerned about this. It had never happened before. Zuko was in a driven, soldier-like state and he had yet to realize she should be healing it.

The cut was long, yet not too deep. She knew it could be sewn together easily enough. She assumed that's what Zuko was getting Appa for. There was a first-aid kit in her pack that she could use. Katara also knew though that she wouldn't be able to walk without being able to heal herself. She still didn't know why she couldn't. A moment later, Zuko came back with Appa in tow. He rushed toward Katara with the kit in his hands. He stopped just short of the hollow where she sat.

"Katara, I had a thought when I was getting Appa." She glanced towards his face, then towards the kit in anticipation. That little bag meant less pain and she wanted to get to work. He glanced at the pack as well and realized he was putting her in more pain. He quickly started getting out supplies. "Why haven't you tried to heal your leg? You have plenty of water around." Zuko layed out the needle and thread.

"I... I tried." said Katara. "When you went after Yan Rha, I focused and tried to heal it, but nothing happened."

Zuko frowned. "What do you mean nothing happened?" he asked.

"I mean that I could feel the energy flowing through me like I normally do when I heal, but the cut wouldn't heal. I don't know what's happening, Zuko." A wrinkle started to form between her brows. Then Zuko had a thought.

"Wait just another minute. I'm going to go see if our friend left his knife here." Zuko jogged back towards the road where just minutes ago, an old man had attacked his friend. Or whatever Katara was to him.

With a stroke of luck, Zuko found the weapon laying on the side of the road in the wet grass. He picked it up and walked back to the hollow. As he walked, he looked it over. It was small, yes, but it was strong. Its blade was black and shiny. It was wrapped at the blunt end with strong string many times over, creating a handle. Zuko recognized its type instantly. It was in fact a highly prized weapon among the fire nation.

Katara looked both worried and curious as she saw Zuko inspecting the blade with familiarity. She waited until he got within a few feet to speak. "Do you recognize it?" she asked him. He nodded. Now it was his turn to have a wrinkle between his brows.

"Katara, this isn't just any old knife." Zuko got to work on Katara's leg while he explained. "This is a blade formed from rock from deep within a sacred mountain of the fire nation. The stone is said to have certain powers. There have been stories of knives like these that circulate throughout the nation. I've heard that they can block certain magic, create more damage than normal knives, that they never need to be sharpened. These knives are actually very rare."

Zuko had to rip the cloth around the cut more than it was already in order to have proper working space. He tried his best to stay gentleman-like, or at least as much as he could be in a situation such as this.

Katara was starting to understand. "So you're saying," she said slowly. "that because I was cut by that particular knife that my healing powers won't work?" Zuko nodded. "But that's crazy. How could that be?" She wanted answers.

"From what I understand," started Zuko, "the stone that this blade came from was found just after the fire nation started attacking the other nations. Some men were trying different stones to see which ones made the best weapons. They were camping near the sacred mountain of Nunsau and saw a massive black boulder that looked like it was a strong stone that wouldn't easily break."

Zuko pinched the sides of the gash together in order to start sewing it up. He could feel Katara tense under his hands. "Relax. I know it's hard, but try. It hurts less." Zuko thought her stress was from the pain. It was to a certain extent. If Katara was being honest with herself though, she knew that she was actually tensed because she was nervous. Zuko's hands were warm on her skin, and they were brushing parts on her that no boy had ever even seen before. She wouldn't let that phase her, though. Zuko was not someone she trusted, and she wanted to remind him of that.

She stopped his hands with her own. "I can do it, Zuko. You don't have to take care of me." She tried to take the needle from his hand and stitch herself up. Zuko, however, had other plans.

"Katara, stop. You're hurt, and I'm helping you. Don't let your pride hurt you more," Zuko said. He successfully kept the needle and thread out of her reach and continued his work. She huffed. He knew she was trying to be brave. However, he wouldn't have her in pain because she was too proud to accept his help.

Katara's heart jumped at this. He caught her. She didn't like accepting his help, but she knew she needed it. And it kind of unnerved her that he pinned her.

Zuko, though appreciating the silence, thought it to be too quiet. He glanced up at Katara and saw a slight blush in her cheeks. Wait, no. It couldn't be. 'What could be going on in her head?' he wondered.


End file.
